Sydney hood thorp



2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

(No Model.)

S. H. THORP.

APPARATUS FOR APFIXING ADHESIVE STAMPS.

Patented Sept. 29, 1891 Inn/"e 1;?50 r.-

m: mums Finns co., PnuTO-Llmm, wukmemu, o. c.

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet2.

S. H. THORP.

APPARATUS FOR APFIXING ADHESIVE STAMPS.

No. 460,383. Patented Sept. 29,1891.

.9 "l i !I w i i 3 w i 6 Fey-7 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

SYDNEY HOOD THORP, OF CHARTERS TOVERS, QUEENSLAND.

APPARATUS FOR AFFIXING ADHESIVE STAMPS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 460,383, dated September 29, 1891.

Application filed January 20, 1891. Serial No. 378,429. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, SYDNEY HOOD THORP, share broker, a subject of the Queen of Great Britain, residing at Charters Towers, in the British Colony of Queensland, have invented an Improved Apparatus for Affixing Adhesive Stamps, of which the following is a specification.

Although the operation of affixing a single adhesive stamp to an envelope or document is notin itself either tedious or particularly disagreeable, yet where it is necessary to stamp aconsiderable number the operation becomes not-only tedious but also intensely disagreeable where the stamps are moistened in the month.

Several appliances have been devised to facilitate the moistening of adhesive stamps where a large number of them have been required to be used. Some of these appliances consist of a pad of felt or other similar material, kept moist by having water applied to it at intervals. Others consist'of a roller of glass or earthenware with its lower half dipped into abody of water contained in a small vessel, in Whose sides said roller is mounted. None of these appliances, however, are capable of applying as well as moistening the stamps at one operation, and therefore they involve the expenditure of considerable time when any large number has to be affixed.

The object of my present invention is to provide a reliable apparatus wherewith stamps can be readily affixed Without the expenditure of so much time and without involving such disagreeable operations as have 1 hitherto been necessary.

Myinvention consists in an apparatus which comprises a pad kept constantly moist with water or other liquid contained in a small receptacle alongside it, and a roller which normally rests upon said pad and is moistened thereby. The spindle of this roller is connected by arms or levers with a pair of other arms or levers carrying at their upper end the stamp-receptacle, in which fits a wooden or other spring-plunger provided with a handle, whereby the apparatus can be operated so as to cause said roller to pass from off the damp pad over the surface of the envelope or other article to which the stamp is to be affixed, and to press the stamps down onto that part of the envelope or other article which has been moistened by the passage of said roller, means of course being provided, as hereinafter described, to insure that not more than one stamp at a time is withdrawn from the'apparatus.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved apparatus for affixing adhesive stamps, illustrating same with the parts in their normal positions in full lines and in the positions they occupy when in the act of affixing the stamp in dotted lines, while Fig. 2 is a plan, and Fig. 3 an end elevation, of said apparatus. Fig. 4 is a central longitudinal section on line 4. 4., Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a side elevation of the watewreservoir detached; and Fig. 6 is a transverse section thereof on line 6 6, Fig. 5. Fig. 7 is a vertical transverse section across the receptacle in which the supply of stamps is contained, showing the plunger which Works therein in elevation, while Fig. 8 is a plan of the under side of said stamp-receptacle. Of these figures, 1 to 4 are drawn to approximately half-scale, 5 and 6 full size, and 7 and 8 double size.

Similar letters of reference indicate the same parts in all the figures.

A represents a pad or piece of felt or other absorbent material,which rests within asmall tray or receptacle a, preferably made integral with a water-reservoir a. A small hole a Fig. 6, is provided in the front side of the water containing vessel a below the upper edge of the pad-containing tray a, thereby i11- suring that as the water in said tray falls beneath the level of said hole a air will be free to pass into the Water-containing vessel a,'

displacing a certain quantity of Water therein, and thus allowing such Water to flow out and replenish the supply in the tray a. By this means I insure the pad Abeing kept constantly moist, the reservoir to being made of such a size as to contain sufficient water or other liquid to last for a suitable length of time.

A small roller B normally rests upon the pad A. Said rolleris formed, preferably, of indiarubber, and is secured about the center of a spindle b, as clearly illustrated in Fig. 2. The outer ends of this spindle I) pass through openings provided for them in the lower ends of a a teases pair of arms 29', whose upper ends are pivoted, as illustrated at b to a second pair of arms 0, whose lower ends are pivoted, as illustrated at c, to a solid block of wood or other rigid base D, while their upper ends serve to support a comparatively large crossbar 6, preferably of wood,in whose center is formed a hole E of exactly the shape and size of the adhesive stamps which it is intended. to contain. The lower end of this stamp-receiver E is provided with four inwardly-projecting clips e, (see Figs. 7 and 8,) whose points project slightly into said receiver, thereby serving to support the pile of stamps contained therein. Inside this stamp-receiver E fits a plunger F, having a knob or handle f, whereby the said plunger can be pressed down upon the pile of stamps in the receiver E when shifted into the position indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 1. This plunger is provided with springs f, by the aid of which it can be again returned to its normal position, as indicated in full lines in said figure. A comparatively small spiral spring 17 is attached to each of the arms I) and extends rearwardly and downwardly to the back of the bed-plate D, where they are secured in any convenient manner, so that they will constantly tend to return said arms I), and therefore the arms 0 and stamp-receiver E, to their normal positions.

Upon the forward end of the bed-plate D, I provide a rod or bar, which I bend into the form illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2, so that its side pieces G curve upwardly from the surface of said bed-plate, as clearly illustrated in Fig. 1., while upon the spindle b I mount a pair of small anti-friction rollers g in such positions as that when the apparatusis operated they will ride up said curved sides Gr, and thereby raise the damping-roller B from off the surface of the envelope or other article, thereby effectually preventing same from smudging or otherwise injuring any writing which may happen to be thereon.

In employing my invention a supply of separate adhesive stamps must be placed within the receiver E, one upon the other and with their adhesive sides downward, and the reservoir a must of course be kept supplied with liquid. The envelope or other article to be stamped is then held upon the surface of the bed-plate D underneath the guides G and with its upper edge close to the pad A. The arms I) O are then caused to move forward by means of the knob or handle f, the effect being to cause the damping-roller B to travel first over the surface of the pad A and then over the surface of the envelope or other article until such time as the small rollers g ride up the curved 6o guides G, when it will be rem oved from the surface of the said envelope or other article The plunger F will press the adhesive side of the Having now particularly described and as- V certained the nature of my said invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I claim is 1. The improved apparatus herein described for affixing adhesive stamps, consisting of a bed-plate D, a pad A, kept constantly moist by water contained in receptacle 0/ and supplied to the pad by hole a a roller B, a stamp-receiver E, having projecting clips extending slightly into it at its lower end, together with pivoted arms or levers b 0, whereby said roller can be caused to travel over the surface of the article to which it is required to affix the stamp, a plunger F, fitting loosely within said receiver and so arranged that it can be pressed down upon the pile of stamps in said receiver, and means for operating said receiver and plunger, substanti ally as specified.

2. In an apparatus for affixing adhesive stamps, the combination, with a stamp-receiver, such as E, supported by the upper end of a pair of pivoted arms, such as O, of a second pair of pivoted arms, such as b, having springs, such as b connected to them and serving to support a damping-roller, such as B, 'at their lower ends, substantially as and for the purposes herein described and explained, and as illustrated in my drawings.

3. In an apparatus for affixing adhesive I stamps, the combination, with a dampingroller, such as B, together with mechanism, such, for instance, as the arms I) O, and a knob or handle f for causing it to travelover the surface of an envelope or other article, of a pair of curved guides, such as G, so constructed and arranged as to lift said roller from off the surface of said envelope or other article after a certain interval, substantially as herein described and explained, and as illustrated in Figs. 1, 2, and 4 of my drawings.

SYDNEY HOOD THORP. Witnesses:

WALTER SMYTHE BAYSTON, PERCIVAL AUGUSTUS SMITH. 

